nicmack31

Can already see the difference! Way to go!

I answer as both a sleever and as a RN. You should contact your PCP and get a referral to a dietician. I work in a family practice office and we do this all the time. You should not have to go this alone and your PCP should then take over the follow up on your labs, etc that are needed to be reviewed from time to time post surgery.

When in doubt, check with your doc or dietician. Your calorie count is going to depend on tons of factors, including how active you are, how much weight you need to loose, etc.

The best advice I can give you is be patient with yourself. I was very emotional after the surgery and would cry about stupid things. It seemed as though I had made a mistake, but now 7 months later I am SUPER happy with how I have progressed and how my new normal has become. Each day gets bettter, and then you start to see results! I can still eat all the foods I did before surgery, just in much smaller amounts. You can do this!

33 year old RN of 11 years. I work triage and manage 3 clinics. I had my sleeve 2/8/12 and was out 3 weeks. Best thing I ever did! Just hit the 75# drop! So excited! 19# to go!

Yes, I have the thinning hair too, but I swear my hair was thick enough for 3 people, so I am good with that. The itching is very annoying, and seems to get worse at night. The bruising is horrible! I did call my surgeon who is slightly perplexed, but I had a B12/folate level drawn today. Will see how that goes (I doubt the problem as I take B12 shots monthly) and then he wants to see me next week. My primary doc (I am a RN at her clinic) is stumped too- I showed her my legs and she squeeled! She laughed and said, most of the time when people say they are bruised it is a tiny thing- I am literally spoted from hip to knee (different stages of bruising makes it look like different colored spots!). Definitely no shorts outside the house for me anytime soon!

• Great job!!! You look amazing!
  

Okay, so I have made it out to 4 months post op, am doing great! Eating basically a normal, varied diet. I have no problems with any food, maybe a tad bit of heartburn on occasion, but basically GREAT! However, about 2 weeks ago I started bruising really badly, with no explaination as to where they came from. I am now basically covered from hip to knee with bruises and have some on my lower legs, arms and hands. My labs are all normal- normal CBC and INR (bleeding time). Any one have ideas? I took my kids to the beach the other day and people stared and asked me if I needed crisis management and if my husband beats me! (to ease your mind, no he does not!). HELP!

Whoa! Do not stop caffeine cold turkey! Slowly cut it out. Have a small amount today and a little less tomorrow and by the third day you should be fine!

Agree! I didn't start an "exercise program" before surgery and wish I would have. My recovery would have been easier and it would have been easier to start exercising after surgery. Anything you do now is worth it, even if it is not the 4 hours per week. Take your little one for walks after work, dance around the house, etc. It keeps you active and them involved, which they love. My kids were super supportive and helped make the exercise fun. I am a very busy mom too, I work full time as a RN and have three kids under 7, but I make the time. I don't go to the gym and work out or go running or anything, but I exercise with my kids daily. It also shows them that exercise is a healthy thing and helps to prevent them from ending up at the same place I did.

You will do great! Congrats!

I think it depends on the person. They teach the 3 meals a day, so people don't overeat their sleeve. At 4 weeks out I ate about 4 times a day. Now at a little over 3 months out, I usually eat at the 3 meal times and have one snack (usually a piece of cheese or fruit). I wouldn't have time with my job to eat any more than that anyway, but it works for me and my weight loss has been on track. If you feel like you are loosing energy after 4 hours or so, I would just ration out your daily food/calories and stretch it to a few more meals/snacks.

I agree, I think how much you loose is up to you. There are statistics about weight loss, but that is just that, a number. We are not numbers, we are people. I just saw my surgeon for my 3 month post op check. I had lost 50 pounds since surgery. He told me if I was disciplined and worked hard, I could easily loose another 50 (if that is what I wanted). So it all lies with what you want and how much work you put into it. You will do great!

Welcome! Good luck on your journey!

Thank you! Good luck to you as well neighbor!

Agreed. Need to call your surgeon.

As a registered nurse, and human being in general, I am so appaled at this. I cannot believe that they could potentially get away with this! How insulting! I have worked as a case manager, patient educator for diabetes and weight loss through my entire journey- even at my highest weight- and never once did anyone ever come to me and seem remotely concerned that a heavy person was teaching patients how to lose weight, etc.

Completely agree!! I wanted the pop so bad, and I think I was secretly hoping it would make me vomit or something after surgery so I would keep off of it, but no such luck! It goes down way too good!

Diet coke is my downfall. I did really well post surgery, but now 2 months out I have started drinking it again. Much less, only 1 can a day now but before it was 3-4 cans per day. I know i need to stop the pop all together, but boy is it hard!!

Hi Everyone!

Introductions please!!

A little bit about you, where you are at in your journey, etc!

I am just now 2 months post op and feeling great! Down 44 pounds, which I just cannot believe! I was sleeved on 2/8/12 by Dr Gipson of Specialists in General Surgery through the Unity Bariatric Center in Fridley. The first 2 weeks were rough and I thought I had made the worst mistake of my life. Now I feel like I am pretty much back to normal. I can eat just about all foods at just a smaller amount. My only downfall right now is that I have been off my rheumatoid arthritis medications since October in preparation for surgery and can't restart them for another month. This makes for very stiff and sore joints and one tired mama! I can't wait for the next month so I can get on my meds and actually start my exercise again.

Outside of my surgery, I am a married mom of 3 kids- 7, 6, and 4. I work full time as a RN in Minnetonka and I have a Mary Kay business that I LOVE!! Life is busy, but GOOD!!!

WELCOME to all of you!!

~Nicky

Thank you!!

Thanks everyone!! I will give them all a try!

Okay, so I am 2 months out and basically eating a normal diet (just smaller amounts). I haven't been very good about getting in my Protein. I eat meat daily and greek yogurt, cheese, but these don't get me to where I need to be protein wise. Even if I take 1 Protein Drink, I still need more. Does anyone eat Protein Bars? If so, what kinds? Thank you!

I use both the strawberry- now just with Water and a little crystal light lemonaid at my desk at work. I also have the unflavored. I used that more during the liquid and soft diet part to add Protein and give myself more energy. I did find that if I used the entire scoup of the unflavored in anything it was a bit too much, but if I backed off a bit it worked fine and I couldn't taste it.

My fav liquids were broths, propel Water and the Protein drinks- you may need to try several until you find ones you like. I ended up using Unjury, strawberry and unflavored. Good luck! The road gets much easier to travel soon!